MoS Steel to meet Mines Min, K'taka CM for KIOCL revival

To revive the ailing Kudremukh Iron Ore Company (KIOCL), the Minister of State for Steel A Sai Prathap, will meet Mines Minister B K Handique and Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa next month in an attempt to secure raw material reserves in the region for the miner.

KIOCL was shut down last year after the Supreme Court banned it from mining iron ore in 2005 from the Western Ghats, home to about 10 billion tonnes of the key raw material used in making steel.

"I will meet the Mines Minister and Karnataka Chief Minister after the budget session of Parliament. I will seek their support and ask for iron ore reserves for the ailing mining company in the state," Prathap said in an interview.

The minister hoped that the company could be revived soon with the help of the state and the Central government.

Due to its poor shape, the steel ministry has put on hold a proposal to dilute the company's additional stake to the public. With the divestment of about 1 per cent government's stake, KIOCL is already listed on two regional bourses.

In a bid to restore its operations, the steel ministry is also working to strike a strategic partnership between KIOCL and country's largest iron ore producer NMDC. The arrangement aims to make KIOCL a subsidiary of NMDC.